City News

City of Wilmington and The Grand Announce the Fifth Season of the “Summer in the Parks” Program

Post Date:06/15/2017 9:00 AM

191 Artists will be featured in City parks over seven weeks beginning June 26

Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki and The Grand Executive Director Mark Fields today announced details about the fifth season of Summer in the Parks, a series of interactive cultural experiences provided free in Wilmington’s neighborhood parks. The program, a collaboration between the City and The Grand, will feature more than 60 events in 13 parks and public spaces across the city.

Each week, Summer in the Parks will feature cultural programs on a fixed schedule in eight city parks, including Haynes, Tilton, Holloway, Woodlawn, Prices Run, Barbara Hicks, Judy Johnson, and the Helen Chambers Playground. In addition, each week will feature a more traditional concert during the early evening. While The Grand serves as producer for the innovative program, it draws on a wide variety of artistic talent from Wilmington and the region.

“The partnership between the City and The Grand has produced unique and outstanding programs which children and families have enjoyed for the past few years,” said Mayor Purzycki. “We are pleased to present another summer of fun, entertainment and interactive opportunities in our city parks.”

All of the Summer in the Parks activities are designed to be more than presentations or performances by including some component of audience participation or interactivity, such as storytelling, theater, art, music, dance, and crafts. Summer in the Parks will showcase a total of 191 individual artists this summer representing 32 cultural organizations and groups. A full schedule of daytime and evening activities can be found on The Grand’s website at www.TheGrandWilmington.org/PARKS.

Pamelyn Manocchio, The Grand’s Director of Community Engagement, is the producing coordinator for Summer in the Parks. “These seven weeks represent some of the most creative, engaged people from the arts community. All of them are dedicated to the idea of taking art out of our theaters and studios and right into the heart of these neighborhoods. We’re not asking the people to come to the art. We’re bringing the art directly to the city residents.”

“We’re extremely proud of this program,” said Executive Director Fields, “for what it does for the city’s youth and families, but also what it demonstrates about the highly collaborative arts community we have created through the years. Summer in the Parks is a testament to the dynamic contribution the arts makes to the city all year long.”

Summer in the Parks receives additional support from The Wilmington Parking Authority, and has been recommended for a grant from the NEA. National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $82 million to fund local arts projects across the country in the NEA’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2017. Included in this announcement is an Art Works award of $10,000 to The Grand to support the Summer in the Parks series. The NEA received 1,728 Art Works applications and will make 1,029 grants ranging from $10,000 to $100,000.

Summer in the Parks is just one of The Grand’s community engagement programs planned for this summer. Summer Explorers (formerly called Summer Children’s Theater) starts four weeks of pay-what-you-can matinee performances of children’s entertainment on Thursday, July 6 with Street Beat. Pippi’s Grand Adventure is next on July 13, followed by Dr. Kaboom on July 20, and the Missoula Children’s Theatre production of Rapunzel on July 28. More information is available at www.TheGrandWilmington.org/Explorers.